


Expectations

by fightforyourwrite



Category: DCU, DCU (Comics), Justice Society of America (Comics)
Genre: Costumes, Gen, Growing Up, Manhattan, New York City, POV First Person, Retrospective
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-28
Updated: 2018-03-28
Packaged: 2019-04-14 04:17:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14127885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fightforyourwrite/pseuds/fightforyourwrite
Summary: Now a full-time hero, Courtney Whitmore contemplates her life choices in an Upper East Side brownstone.





	Expectations

It’s incredible how quickly time moves.  _ Scary _ almost, in a way. 

One minute I’m pestering mom about moving from Beverly Hills to friggin’ Nebraska, and not even the interesting part of Nebraska. The next, I’m suddenly one of the youngest heroes to be admitted into the Justice Society. 

It all feels so far away from me now. I never anticipated how fast my life would carry on. As of lately, I’ve left a lot of things behind, things that only felt important back then compared to how they do now. 

I’m used to New York. I’m used to seeing the skyscrapers outside of my window. I don’t think I can ever get sick of seeing that skyline. 

The Brownstone near Battery Park is a second home to me now, one I have outside of Blue Valley. 

So it really makes me wonder why on earth I’m being stationed in the Upper East Side instead of Lower Manhattan. 

I digress though. Why should I be complaining here? I mean, who else can say that their job involves being stowed up in pretty sweet townhouse?

No one, that’s who. Not even Batman. 

It’s strange being a full-time hero now. It was not too long ago when I was begging for afternoon calculus to be over so I could finally grab the staff again. I think I spent more time in that class thinking about Society-related stuff than I ever did on math. 

I used to think so much about what it would be like to be Stargirl full-time. No more high school woes, no more worrying about being on the prom committee, just Stargirl and the Justice Society 24/7. 

Now that I’ve got my wish, I’ve come to find that the reality of my teenage fantasies is rather boring. 

At least, it’s rather boring for now. The only reason I’m not with the other Society members is that issues between them and the League have arisen. 

As much as I’d like to have some sort of idea on what’s going on exactly, Karen insisted that she handle it instead of me. 

So while Power Girl is off doing Power Girl things, Stargirl’s left to wait in this unfamiliar brownstone while Courtney Whitmore currently contemplates her life choices.

Stargirl only ever comes out whenever some sort of interdimensional being or villain is attacking the city. This being New York, it happens every other day, but still, I’m left with a little more downtime than I expected. 

It’s strange being on my own now. In the old brownstone, I was never too far from anyone. Sometimes if I couldn’t sleep, I’d head to the kitchen. It was strange that every time I went there, I was never alone. Most of the time, I found some kind of hero, young or old, unable to sleep as well. 

There was never a sense of loneliness in that place. Now here, living in a different brownstone that feels more empty every day, I’m starting to realize just how much life has changed.

I’m eighteen now, I’m a high school graduate, and now I’m closer to my dream of being a full-time superhero. 

It’s just not what I expected entirely when I was younger. I’m not unsatisfied and I’m nowhere near quitting, I’m just… what’s the word for it? 

Thoughtful? Worried? No… 

_ Pensive!  _ Yes, that’s it. I’m pensive in regards to the choices I’ve made in the last few months. That makes sense, right?

That’s perfectly normal for a young adult to think this way. I feel like everyone’s convinced that they know what they want to do sometimes, but even if they dedicate their entire lives to that path, they’re bound to run into something that doesn’t meet their expectations. 

Some of my friends are in college right now, others are working, and me? 

I’m currently looking over my Stargirl costume on a lovely Thursday afternoon. 

Or rather, what’s left of my Stargirl costume. 

The other night, I was fighting some pyromaniac.

Apparently, the guy’s from Gotham, and in complete Gotham fashion, he appeared soaring through the sky with a winged jetpack and handheld flamethrower. 

I really wonder what made the guy pack his bags and leave Gotham in favour of New York. 

He was a manageable fight though, but that’s not to say that he didn’t manage to nab me with a few fireballs. 

It’s great that the Cosmic Converter Belt can grant me a certain level of durability. I’m pretty unscathed for someone who went up against a fire-spewing Gothamite. I just wish it could have granted the same to my outfit. 

The old crop-top and shorts combo is in tatters now. I’ve spent an hour looking it over in the brownstone’s living room. There’s no way I can salvage it now. 

Eventually, after spending too much time mulling over the remains of blue and white spandex, I take the remains of my costume off the coffee table and put them away. Maybe I’ll come back to them later, but for now, Stargirl’s gonna have to reinvent herself. 

Or at least find something else to wear for when trouble strikes again. 

I hear my phone buzzing from the kitchen counter. It’s something I can detect even from the living room. 

When I run over and pick it up, I’m expecting some sort of text from a friend, whether it be Mary telling me about college life or from Ted asking me to decode whatever youthful slang my generation happens to be using nowadays. 

But it’s not any of that. Instead, it’s a notification from a news website. Judging from the context of my current position and life choices, it’s probably not good news. 

When I press the right icons on the phone, I see an update and warning about an armed robbery currently going on in Queens. 

Like clockwork, I can feel myself shifting into hero mode. Costume or no costume, Stargirl isn’t backing down from a fight. 

I rush up the stairs of the townhouse until I get to the top floor. In my room, my staff and belt are in the same closet I always keep them in. After grabbing the belt and staff, I see what else I have in my wardrobe to fashion a makeshift costume out of. 

I got an old blue hoodie, yoga pants, tennis shoes, some goggles that probably belonged to Jack at one point, and what I’m pretty sure are a pair of legwarmers. 

The image in my head involving all those clothes combined doesn’t exactly scream  _ ‘Star Powered Teenager’  _ in the exact way I’d like, but it’s much better than a miniskirt or hot pants. 

It’ll have to do for now. I’ll just tell whatever armed robber that Stargirl’s going through a few changes as of lately. 

But she’s still the same Stargirl at the core. Underneath it all, after every I’ve seen in my admittedly short life, I still am, and always will be, Courtney Whitmore. 


End file.
